Brandan Fokken

WPM's Competitor of the Month - December 2011





Interviewed by: Mike Hall


Sometimes our passion and our drive to compete and win are stronger than our bodies. This can play havoc to one's physical condition and can become life threatening. That is exactly what happened to our Competitor of the Month, Brandan Fokken.

Brandan took the challenge of winning and competing to the extreme; which caused him to endure 5 days in the hospital's ICU, receiving insulin injections, having blood draws every two hours, being placed on beta blockers, having a PIC line placed in through his arm to his heart, receiving constant IV's, all the while on a special diet to replace lost fluid and nutrients. He was paralyzed and the doctors couldn't figure out what was wrong with him.

This can happen to anyone at anytime if they are not careful. Brandan has learned a lot from this experience. He walks away alive only by the grace of God, knowledgeable doctors and his will to survive. But, he walks away with more knowledge on how to prepare for a competition, how to eat after a show, how to listen to his body closely, and how to be patient for progress.

Come with us as we talk with Brandan. He will explain his near death experience and tell us what he has learned from it. Let us introduce to you our Competitor of the Month, Brandan Fokken. We hope his lesson can prevent others from following down the same road he took.

"...Listen to your body. Be smart and have a good plan to follow. Do not binge eat after a show, but instead eat in moderation, take all your normal vitamins and minerals all the way to the show, and do not over train. Also, have someone with you at a show that can help monitor you and can be ready to help you if any problems do come up."

WP: Your story is very sad to listen to but, I think it has a very good outcome and could teach others. Let's start with this interview slowly and work our way through. You recently won the Heavy Weight Bodybuilding class at the Fargo ND Upper Midwest show. What happened to you the following day that changed your life?

Sounds good, let's get started! I did recently win the Upper Midwest in Fargo. Tom Kemper, the shows promoter always puts on a great show that everyone really enjoys being a part of. I had a lot of fun and am happy to have done as well as I did.

I was on stage a lot in Fargo between my routine, pose down etc. and then the overall. I really worked hard up there. The next day I was really tight from posing and from being dehydrated, and I had the three hour car ride home, which didn't help anything. By the time I got home I was super tight, sore, and all knotted up. Later that evening. I went down stairs for something and when I came back up I started taking the steps two and three at a time like I normally would, that is when I felt a pain in my right quad and my leg gave out. I ended up tearing it, luckily not bad enough for surgery. My leg swelled up and turned black and blue; which at the moment was devastating.

WP: You were supposed to compete two weeks later in Minnesota, but with the injury, you could not. What did you do then?

I talked to my trainer, Ned Sacipovic, about it and he said, "Why don't you try physique?" Being a bodybuilder, I was not the most open to the idea and since I knew nothing about the division, I assumed all you would see up there were a bunch of cocky pretty boys with abs, and that is not something I wanted to be a part of. He persisted and explained how it was; such a new division that the guys taking part in the division now would be the ones dictating where it would go. That really appealed to me, so I started to look into it. I first saw pictures of Adam Lamb who had recently won a show and also of Alex Carneiro. I was impressed with their physiques. I contacted both of them and found they had both transitioned from bodybuilding. They were both very knowledgeable, had took the time to answer all my questions, and had great attitudes, nothing close to what I assumed I would encounter in the division. They both had great things to say and told me how much they enjoyed it, so I decided I would give it a try.

WP: They told you that you were too big to compete in the Physique category. How did you handle that?

I have never considered myself a big guy; I was at the lower end of the heavy weight class and honestly did not see eye to eye with the judges, but I decided if I was going to stick it out and try and make it in the class that I had better listen, do my research, ask a lot of questions and get some advice from some national judges.

I contacted Christine Bongiovanni, who is a national judge and asked her what I should change and how I should try and come in for a national show. She gave me great advice and I really respect her opinion. I pretty much consult with her before every show now; she has been a great asset and also a good friend to me. Between her advice, what I saw on other stages nationwide in pictures online, the advice of my trainer, and taking into consideration everything Alex and Adam told me, I decided to listen 100%. From there my trainer Ned and I formulated a plan to get my size down, sacrifice the muscle I had worked so hard to gain, come in more balanced and athletic looking, and give it all I had for nationals.

WP: You ended up in ICU after that show. Tell us about that.

I was not feeling the best at the show and after it was over I became extremely cramped up. I went back to my hotel room and just lay there the rest of the night, with an occasional cupcake, or 5, and room service to keep all my post competition cravings at bay. I felt even worse the next day and by the time I got on my flight, my body wasn't moving how it should and I was starting to feel numb all over. When I arrived home I needed help out of the car, but just told myself it was from the show and flying and I would be ok. I had dinner and decided to sprawl out on the floor to try and stretch myself out. I did that for a few minutes and when I tried to get up, I could not. That is when I knew it was time to go to the hospital. The doctors could not figure out what was wrong with me, so they started an IV and kept running tests. They found my potassium was at a 2.0 which normal range should be a 3.5-5.0. So, I was immediately admitted.

They ran tests on me all night. By morning I could not move my legs or my feet, I could not sit up by myself, and my arms barely worked. The doctor came in and told me that my potassium dropped below 2.0, my vitamin B1, D, Magnesium, and Phosphorus were all stripped from my body. My liver enzymes were very high, my blood pressure was 199/98, my resting heart rate was about 135, my blood sugar at one point was 356, I was paralyzed, and they were not exactly sure why.

By about 10:00 a.m. a priest was sent in to pray for me, which I promise is not something I wanted to see. The doctors kept telling me that they were working on it, consulting another hospital and working together to try and help me. At one point, I started to black out and honestly thought that was it. I did not think about money, or my job, or even competing, but that I was going to die right there and no amount of muscle, strength or anything else could change my fate. I thought about my family, my friends, that fact I have never been married and that I have never had kids. I saw a lot of my life pass by in my head all the way to the point of being buried, a true near death experience. I endured 5 days in the ICU, insulin injections, blood draws every two hours, I had to take a beta blocker, a PIC line was put in through my arm to my heart-which was the worst of it all, constant IV's, a special diet was made for me, and I was given a lot of vitamins which were pills the size of matchbox cars.

The doctors attributed everything to re-feeding syndrome, which is where after dieting so long my body treated me almost like I was an anorexic, so when I was eating all those carbs and sugar after the show, my body was trying to store fat and was spilling the rest of the nutrients I needed to survive. Team that up with dehydrating myself for the show, my diet leading up to the show, flying which dehydrates you, breaking myself down to practically nothing for the show to keep my size down, and it was 105 or above the whole time I was in Vegas and was outside more than I should have been. All of it added up and almost killed me. To die due to an electrolyte imbalance is something I never even considered happening previously, but I am obviously far more aware now of the dangers of everything I did to myself. I was and am still very humbled by the situation and will be for the rest of my life.

WP: That is a horrible story! Just glad you made it! If you had to do it all over again, how do you think you would have handled it?

First, I do not regret it happening. I think that everything happens for a reason and I am blessed to be here and my life has changed significantly for the better since then. If I had to do it over, I would have slowed down in my training and not gone to the point of obsession and let it take over my entire life. I would have monitored my diet better and laid off the cardio a bit. I would have also kept my vitamin intake up and not stopped the week of the show, and because I was dehydrating myself, I would not have been out in the sun. Most importantly, I would have taken in more good foods after the show and monitored my sugar and carbs a lot closer and eased my way back into a normal diet over time.

WP: Any advice for our readers on how to prevent injuries such as what you went through?

Listen to your body. Be smart and have a good plan to follow. Do not binge eat after a show, but instead eat in moderation, take all your normal vitamins and minerals all the way to the show, and do not over train. Also, have someone with you at a show that can help monitor you and can be ready to help you if any problems do come up.

WP: Everything is not lost though. You entered an online competition and won. Can you tell us about that?

Before I went to Las Vegas for the USA's, I entered a national magazine's online challenge. I forgot that I even entered it, to be honest. You are normally able to get your friends and family to vote for you to win a spot at the show at the Olympia, but due to my hospital stay and as I said forgetting I had even entered, I never did that. After I got out of the hospital I got an email asking me if I won the contest if I could make it to the show. I said yes, although at the time I had decided I was done competing. The next night I got a notification telling me that there were 50,000 votes cast and that I was the winner! I honestly could not believe it. I did not know what to do at first. I took a day to think about it and thought that it happened for a reason and even though I was in no condition to compete, I would at least give it a shot and see what I could do.

WP: You had 5 weeks to get prepared to compete at the Olympia. How did you handle this differently then you did previously?

I knew that if I was going to get ready, I needed help. I researched different trainers and came across Nick Freglette with Peak Performance Prep. He had a great reputation and already had some physique pros on his team. After we talked on the phone for the first time, I was sold. I explained to him everything that previously had happened, my fears, and what I wanted to get out of competing again. He took the time to listen and came up with a plan of attack.

The first week I did moderate cardio, which was not easy. I got tired right away and would immediately start sweating. I started a new diet that he wrote for me and started a new supplement regimen, supplied to me by Jon and Deb Peterson at Max Muscle here in Sioux Falls. I took all the vitamins I had lacked during my hospital stay and added in everything else Nick suggested. Nick was very hands on and monitored me closely and gave me both the attention I felt I needed and helped add to the confidence that I lost during my whole hospital ordeal. At about four weeks out, I started to push it and by about two weeks out, my body was really responding to everything. I came into the show without doing my normal deplete process, was much bigger, fuller, and had energy that I had not at any previous show.

WP: What was the outcome of the competition?

There were 53 guys total in the competition. In my opinion anyone could have walked away with the title, everyone looked amazing. I ended up placing 4th out of 53. The competitor in me, of course, wishes I would have walked away with the win, but just getting up there after everything I went through, regardless of where I placed, is a win for me. I left Vegas this time feeling great, I met a lot of great people, and enjoyed myself the entire time I was there, not to mention I got to compete at the Olympia!

WP: You are so right. That must have been a huge accomplishment for you. What is the next competition you are planning to compete in?

At the moment, I am on a break. I did a local show after the Olympia which made a total of 5 for the year, which for anyone is a lot and that is when you are in good health. My body needed a break. I wanted to push it to one more national show this year, but I know I am doing what is best for me. I plan to really work hard this off-season and return with a much improved physique. I will do both the New Jersey and Chicago national shows this year and potentially one more in pursuit of a pro card.

WP: What has competitions taught you thus far?

Competitions have taught me patience. I am a stronger person physically, but also mentally. I feel I am more organized, I work harder at achieving my goals, have more passion for the things I enjoy in my life, I have more of a work ethic, and it has shown me that hard work and dedication does pay off. I have more confidence than I did before and have been shown that the things you think you can't do you can, the only limit is your mind.

WP: Tell me about your family. In addition, are you married, single, or dating?

My family is great. I also consider my closest friends my extended family. They are very supportive in what I do and stand behind me in every decision I make, even when I came out of the hospital and went right back into training doing the same thing that put me there in the first place . They are proud of me regardless of placement and love me unconditionally.

My family means the world to me and they are why I am who I am, why I have the work ethic I do and I honestly believe they are why I made it out of the hospital. If I would have had to sit in the hospital day after day I think I may have lost all hope, but they were there 24/7 and I was never alone. They kept me talking, laughing, kept me positive, and most of all showed me they all loved me by being there. They are my drive and a big reason why I am as successful as I have been. I really could go on and on about them, they really are all that great.

I am currently dating, but I am taking that very slow. I have not had the best luck in the past and have learned from those mistakes. I have been working very hard on myself and I want to be in a place that I can truly have the type of relationship with someone that I have always wanted. Since being in the hospital I do not rush into anything, but really calculate everything I do and that includes dating, I want it to be right and have learned from the past that when you do not really take the time to get to know someone that you eventually will be surprised by who they really are and it never usually works out. I want to be with someone that knows all the best there is about me, but also someone that knows all the worst and is ok with that too. I want a best friend, someone I can share everything with including a healthy lifestyle and that will stand behind me no matter what and allow me to do the same for them. I can tell you that when I do end up with someone, I am at the point in my life that I am ready to be married, have kids and everything that comes with that so I can only guess that my next girlfriend will be the one, or so I hope.

WP: Well said! What are the key factors that dictate the way you train today?

It all depends what I am training for, if I am getting ready for a show, or if I am in my off-season. I do not go into the gym with a workout in my head, and periodically will change what body part that day based on how I feel. I listen to my body and let the workout just come out. I can be in a different mood, have a different energy level, more or less focus on any given day, so I tailor my workouts around how I am feeling both mentally and physically, and try and get the most out of every time I step in the gym.

WP: What supplements do you currently take?

I am sponsored athlete with SEI Nutrition, so I take most of my products from them. I am also locally sponsored by Jon and Deb Petersen at Max Muscle, so the rest of what I need I get there.

SEI Max protein, SEI-max amino, SEI-Excellean (when dieting), SEI-Methylhex (when dieting), SEI-Max AR7 - pre workout, SEI-Max NO- pre workout, and SEI- Max RSQ- post workout.

Max Muscle: I take Vitamin D, Magnesium, Vitamin C, ALA, L- Carnitine, Glutamine, B complex, men's multi, fish oil, High 5 Casein Protein, and Max Pro Whey Protein.

WP: What are your goals in the future?

I want to be successful in all that I do. My first and foremost job is at POET. Poet is the largest ethanol producer in the world of which I am the corporate wellness coordinator. I would like to educate as many people as I can within our corporation and introduce a healthy lifestyle to everyone here at POET. We currently have 27 plants nationwide, so I have my work cut out for me in reaching everyone, but I love what I do and am blessed to be put in a position to be able and work with and help so many people. So I am determined to make an impact at POET.

I also want to have a website set up early next year to start doing more online training and to advertise and sell my apparel line "FOKKEN STRONG". I am already a guest speaker, but would like to get more involved in that and speak in front of more groups. I would like to continue to educate myself and pass my knowledge onto others as others have to me. I would like to continue to train competitors for shows and help them achieve their goals. I would also like to be a contributor to magazines and write health articles, and possibly maybe even a book someday.

WP: What do you consider to be important in life, and why?

When I lay there thinking I was dying in the hospital, I thought about a lot. The things I thought about were my family, friends, etc. I have since been on a mission of living life to the fullest, spending time with those that matter and those that I love, setting a positive example for others to follow, not being afraid of making mistakes because I have realized the ones that truly care about me will accept me anyway. I always thought I had to win and win to continue to achieve greatness for others to listen to me and be on a pedestal above everyone else. I have come to realize that I do not have to be above others for them to listen to me. If I am passionate about something, humble, and genuine about what I am talking about, people will listen regardless.

I think that judging others is a waste of time. So often we base everything on someone's exterior appearance. We are afraid to get to know who someone really is, and life should not be about that. You never know what someone has to offer, or who they really are until you get the time to get to know them. Where you may think someone is overweight because they are lazy and eat bad, they may have a genetic disorder or disease, or someone that is in shape you may assume they are not intelligent or are on drugs etc. or by someone's gender assuming a females are not capable of something because she is a girl, or judging by the color of someone's skin. You may be surprised by who these people are what they have to offer and what they are truly capable of. One thing my hospital stay taught me, was live each day to the fullest as if it were your last, love a lot, be happy, work hard, be a good person, help others, set goals and achieve them, and eliminate the negative. Also, get out of your own way sometimes and look at how your actions affect others, life is not all about you.

WP: Any shout outs?

I could list people all day because I owe a lot of people thanks, but I will try and keep it short.

I would like to thank my Father Pat and stepmother Neilie, Grandma Patricia, Grandma Sherry, Forrest Sanner, Cousins Jeremy and Trevor Griffith, Chad Boellhower Jon and Deb Petersen, Tammie and Alyssa Broin, Brian Wollman, Trish Erickson, and Mary Griffith for ALWAYS being there for me, keeping me grounded, for listening to me, guiding me, and helping me develop as a person and who I am today. I would not be where I am without all of you all.

I would like to thank Jeff Broin. He's the owner of the company I work at. He's an amazing man!

I would like to give special thanks to Kate Warkenthien for being there every step of the way through my last 3 shows, being the person to talk some sense into me and then getting me to go to the hospital. You were also by my side through my whole recovery and helped to keep me positive and kept it in my head that I in fact would make, would get better, and would achieve my goals. Without you I probably would not be here today, so I am eternally grateful to have you in my life.

I would also like to thank IFBB pro Heather Nappi for being supportive and there for me when I needed a friend. You are definitely an inspiration and someone so many people aspire to be like; your work ethic alone separates you from the rest. You are humble and unselfish, and have a true heart of gold.

I would also like to give a shout out to Ned Sacipovic for getting me started in bodybuilding, training me, making me believe I could do it, seeing the potential in me and always being supportive, inspiring, and an giving me an example to look up to an follow.

Also to all the MP competitors; you are all a great bunch of guys who bust their butts every day and in doing so set an example for everyone around you. You inspire me, motivate me, and have all taught me so much so thank you.

I would like to thank Mia Tiegs for being a life long friend, inspiring me to be a better person, accepting me regardless of my faults, and being someone I can trust.

I think that about covers everyone, but for those I have not mentioned, and I am sure you will point it out, thank you all for everything.

WP: Give me an example of your workout.

My workouts change every day based how I feel, look, and the goals I am going after at that time. Since I am off-season, I am currently lifting a bit heavier than I have the last year. I will list my standard split:

Monday-Chest/Abs
Tuesday-Arms
Wednesday-Legs/Abs
Thursday-Shoulders
Friday-Back/abs
Saturday-I will usually do a touch-up workout and hit parts that I feel I need to bring up I will usually do abs this day also.

WP: Do you have a favorite quote or words that you live by?

Yes, I do. The first one I read while I was in the hospital and really had an effect on me for obvious reasons. The second one is words I live by, not to mention I have always been a huge fan of Arnold.

"Sometimes we have to let go of the life we have planned, to have the life that is waiting for us." ~ Joseph Campbell

"Strength does not come from winning. Your struggles develop your strengths. When you go through hardships and decide not to surrender, that is strength." ~ Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Stats:
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 225
Biceps: 18.5"
Waist: 34"
Marital Status: Single

WP: It has been a pleasure interviewing you! I wish you all the best of luck!

Thank you very much it has been a pleasure speaking with you, and thank you for the honor of being named Competitor of the Month!